How can you actually tell if an agency is working well? WDR has just answered this question in a report on the recruitment of nursing staff from abroad. The film accompanied three nurses from Colombia in their attempt to arrive in Germany. Two had entrusted themselves to agencies that do not carry a seal of approval and only support language training up to level A2 or B1. These two young women had numerous problems in Germany: a basement room without a bathroom or kitchen as an apartment, no support for further language acquisition, communication problems at work. One candidate failed to gain recognition, the other became mentally ill. Several times she was on the verge of returning home to her two children. During the three years it took her to gain recognition, her marriage broke down. As a contrast, the film shows a skilled worker (OTA) who was accompanied by TalentOrange. Positive in Adriana's case. The employer, Evangelisches Klinikum Bielefeld Bethel, took exemplary care of her integration at her new place of residence and her induction.
It was very helpful for Adriana that she had already taken the B2 exam in Colombia and was able to speak fluently on arrival. We prepared her for the exam in a full-time language course at our language school. Despite careful preparation by us, the official process stalled several times - among other things, Adriana had to wait more than two months for the German embassy in Colombia to issue her visa. We kept following up until Adriana was finally able to leave the country. We also accompanied her carefully on her arrival in Germany and are still available to answer any questions she may have. Today, Adriana is happy at her station and the recognition of her qualification is already in sight.
Filmmaker Sonja Kolonko accompanied our Managing Director Dr. Tilman Frank to Colombia in the summer of 2024. The film shows in detail how we select our candidates. The three examples clearly show what fair recruitment means - and what dire consequences recruitment below language level B2 can have for young professionals. They may not pass the recognition test, work for a long time as auxiliary staff below their qualification level and return disappointed without having had the chance to arrive properly.
Thank you, dear Sonja Kolonko, for this impressive movie!